Press Release

October 12, 2005, Philadelphia, PA—New paintings by the artist Sarah McCoubrey will be on view at Locks Gallery from November 4th through December 17th, 2005. The opening reception will be held on Friday, November 4th from 5:30–7:30 pm. Admission is free and open to the public. Signs of Life, Locks Gallery's third exhibition of McCoubrey's work, consists of twenty paintings and drawings depicting the landscapes of rural New York and Ireland. McCoubrey paints intricately detailed images of her environment that reflect the unique influence of time, both human and ecological on these spaces. She uses the technique of glazing to gradually build up the surfaces of her paintings, creating depth and intimacy in the picture plane that the viewer's eye can travel about in. Her landscapes come from imagination and memory, as well as photographs and on-location sketches, representing a delicate blend of the real and the created environment. Large skies, expansive vistas, and a milky atmosphere are characteristic of McCoubrey's works. A devoted landscape painter, her work evokes the Hudson River School tradition as well as 19th century European landscape paintings; however, run-down sheds, signposts, and other signs of human presence often make an appearance in her paintings, subtly reminding us of a contemporary time and place. Aware of the weight ofhistory on the genre of landscape painting, McCoubrey's body of work speaks for its remnants as well as for art's enduring fascination with nature. McCoubrey received her MFA from the University of Pennsylvania and is an Associate Professor of Art at Syracuse University. She is the receipient of several grants, including the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in Painting, a Milton Avery Foundation Fellowship, a MacDowell Colony Fellowship and a New York State Council on the Arts Grant. McCoubrey’s work was included in the 2002 Everson Museum of Art Biennial and in recent exhibits at Lowe Art Gallery, Syracuse University; Tyler Art Gallery, SUNY Oswego; and the Schweinfurth Memorial Art Gallery, Auburn, NY.